49ers roster: Predicting 6 players who make the Pro Bowl in 2021
By Peter Panacy
No. 2: 49ers Tight End George Kittle
Let’s make one thing clear: If healthy, tight end George Kittle will make the Pro Bowl every year until he decides to retire.
And at 27 years old, that’s not going to happen anytime soon.
Granted, Kittle missed out on the Pro Bowl a year ago, thanks to him suffering two key injuries that ultimately limited him to just eight games played. During those eight games, and still dealing with the same challenges as Brandon Aiyuk, Kittle still managed 48 receptions for 634 yards and two touchdowns.
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No, that’s not enough for Pro Bowl status. But extrapolated over a full 16-game season, it would have produced 96 catches for 1,268 yards and four scores.
That’s more like it.
Kittle does have an injury history, unfortunately, which is perhaps the only thing keeping him from being ranked No. 1 on this list. But the one-time owner of the NFL’s single-season receiving-yards record at the position still remains one of those perennial threats, not just for Pro Bowl honors but also for a first-team All-Pro selection.